Mayors and advocates say transit needs immediate federal funding

From across Canada, more than 15 transit and community groups, mayors and transit board chairs from six agencies came together Monday to call on the federal government to support a new and more sustainable model for transit funding.

“Transit is the most powerful method of tackling traffic congestion,” the group said in a statement. “It is the lifeblood of economic growth in our biggest cities. It is a solution to the rising cost of living. It helps us reduce carbon emissions. But the public transit systems across the country are in a financial crisis.”

The group is calling for long-term transit funding tied to operational costs, rather than only capital expenditures like new transit lines or vehicles.

“We always hear provincial and federal politicians say that they support transit, and they agree that we need to expand it, but we need action, not words,” said Brad West, mayor of Port Coquitlam, B.C., who chairs the mayors’ council of the regional transit board. 

“We need a new model that quickly expands the funding available to meet both capital and operating needs so we can ensure that transit is working to achieve our shared objectives on affordability, on housing, on climate action, economic growth and affordability.” 

The Canada Public Transit Fund, a federal government investment created to support transit in communities across Canada, is not set to start until 2026, and West says the need is now — two years away is too far. 

“After 2025, if we don’t find a solution, TransLink will need to shut down all bus service after 8 p.m., cut most bus service in some of our fastest growing parts of our region, and reduce sky service by 30 per cent,” said West at a press conference.

Denis Agar, executive director of Movement, a Metro Vancouver transit advocacy group, feels that the federal government hasn’t got the message yet. 

“We need operating funding. There’s a shortage of transit across this country,” said Agar. 

“It started in Toronto and Vancouver where there were too many people trying to ride the bus, and they were getting left behind by full buses — and now, we have people getting left behind in Halifax, Castlegar, B.C., and other places.” 

Agar believes the call to the federal government is just the start, and other levels of government should and will be asked to join. 

“The money could come from any of the three levels of government, but we’re really focused on the federal government at this point because the problem is afflicting so many cities across Canada,” said Agar. “But that doesn’t absolve other levels.”